Delhi University Appeals To Teachers To Abandon Protest, Evaluate Answer-Sheets

The Delhi University on Saturday made an appeal to the teachers' association members to take up evaluation of exam sheets -- abandoned by them in protest -- for the sake of the "future of students" and also so that results can be announced in time. "The annual/semester exams of the University of Delhi commenced from first week of May 2018. Due to a call given by Delhi University Teachers' Association (DUTA), there has been little participation of the teachers from different colleges of university in the evaluation of answer-scripts for the undergraduate courses," the varsity Registrar said in a statement. "Considering the future of students, an appeal is made to the teaching fraternity of the University of Delhi to join the evaluation process and complete the evaluation well in time so that results can be declared without delay," it added. Opposing the 'graded autonomy' as proposed to colleges by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, the DUTA teachers have been boycotting the evaluation of answer sheets since May 9. The association is of the view that the proposed 'autonomy' is an underhanded move to bring "self-financing schemes and online courses", which will have "far reaching consequences" and may lead towards privatisation of higher learning institutions.

It registered its protest with the ministry and University Grants Commission also on Friday against a probable grant of status of autonomy to the university's St. Stephen's College. The teachers' body has alleged that the college -- the only one to apply for autonomy so far among DU colleges -- had applied for the status of autonomy without taking into account the opinion of teachers and students of the college. "The DUTA has been forced to give a call for evaluation boycott. It appeals to students and parents to lend support to the struggle to save Delhi University and its colleges as institutions of affordable quality education," the association had said in a statement on Friday.